


Timshel

by petrichorishly



Series: Denouement [2]
Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Gun Violence, Hostage Situations, Post-Devil Face Reveal to Chloe Decker, Post-Season/Series 03, Protective Lucifer, Shooting, TDN Naughty or Nice Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 16:12:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17144957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petrichorishly/pseuds/petrichorishly
Summary: A shooting in a bank, Chloe being held as the gunman's hostage and Lucifer's horror as he fears for his Detective's life.Choices are made, for better or for worse.





	Timshel

**Author's Note:**

  * For [youcantmakeme](https://archiveofourown.org/users/youcantmakeme/gifts).



> Part of the Deckerstar Network "Naughty or Nice Exchange" and my gift to _youcantmakeme_.  
> The original prompt was _hope_ and I tried to work it into the subtext as best as I could, though I fear it may have gotten away from me a little. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll enjoy it still.

It was a gray Saturday morning but despite the slight drizzle and chilly breeze, Lucifer had opened up the glass doors to his balcony wide. The sun only barely peeked over the horizon; it was early but Lucifer had been awake for hours. It was unusual for Los Angeles to be this cold in the middle of December but he didn’t mind. He stood just inside the glass doors to avoid the rain as he sipped on an almost scalding coffee. He’d foregone the shot of whisky.

From where he stood, he could see the lights that decorated the city for the holiday season, already lit on this gray day, and the streets already busy with people in the throes of consumption. He never enjoyed the holiday season. For several reasons, some more obvious than others.

But this year felt different, he thought. Just a little. He wasn’t entirely alone this year.

Just a few days ago, he’d spent the evening at the Detective’s apartment, just him and her. He’d cooked and helped her wrap the few presents she had already gotten for Beatrice. It had been nice, for lack of a better word. He’d enjoyed the light conversation. It had gotten a bit heavier, when Chloe had tentatively asked some questions regarding, well, him, but he’d answered honestly and Chloe had listened.

“How long were you in Hell?” she’d asked and it had caught Lucifer off guard, stunning him into silence. “You don’t have to—if you don’t want—” Chloe had quickly disregarded the question but Lucifer had caught her hand as she had reached for the scissors.

“It’s alright. I do want to tell you everything you want to know. It’s just… I don’t want to chase you away again.”

“You won’t. I won’t run.”

He’d given her a smile, then had handed her the scissors. “It was a very long time. I can’t quite give you an exact number of years, especially seeing as time in Hell is different than here on Earth.” Her eyes had looked up at him, not with pity but with compassion. “I took vacations, though. Sometimes months, other times just a few days. However long I could evade Amenadiel.”

“You won’t just leave again someday, will you?”

“Not if I can help it. And should I leave, I will inform you of it, I promise. Even if it’s just for a vacation.”

She’d smiled, warming him from the inside out. “Good.” Then she’d joked, “In that case, I’ll let you know, if I decide to go on a vacation, as well. I’ll send you a text.”

“You better.”

It almost felt like the whole Cain fiasco never happened. After Vegas, it had taken Chloe anther few weeks to be entirely comfortable, he felt. She had spent time with him, yes, but there had been moments, when she had looked at him as if he were a complete stranger. He knew that in those moments she was somehow reminded of his truth, of what he really was. And he told himself that he didn’t mind.

But it stung, nonetheless.

Even now, about six weeks later, she still looked at him like that sometimes.

He shook his head to clear his mind of those thoughts. Lucifer was grateful that Chloe had accepted him and he knew she had, or she wouldn’t let her offspring attach herself to his person every single time they saw each other. Beatrice had surprisingly never mentioned what had happened on their trip to Vegas. For some inexplicable reason, the child was not afraid of him. And wasn’t that a novelty, a child who didn’t fear the worst of monsters. Chloe just kept saying that the spawn felt safe with him but that wasn’t really an explanation.

Lucifer let it go after a while and decided to take it for what it was and be happy. He worked cases with Chloe again and, truthfully, that was more than he could have asked for. The Devil really didn’t have the right to ask for anything more from someone like Chloe.

The rain began pouring in earnest now and Lucifer stepped away from the open doors. Quickly, he emptied his coffee, let his fingers skim the surface of his baby grand in passing, and went to get dressed. When he returned to the living area, his phone on the bar top flashed in indication of a new message. Humming under his breath, he picked it up, his mood lifted exponentially, when he saw it was from the Detective.

_Active shooter at the bank. If I don’t make_

At first, Lucifer frowned, then he read the text again and suddenly he couldn’t hear the noise of the pouring rain anymore. He couldn’t hear the honking cars in the street anymore. Couldn’t even hear his heartbeat. It was all drowned out by a cacophony of white noise.

Chloe.

She was in danger. Was she going to continue that sentence with _if I don’t make it out_? Was she shot? No, then she wouldn’t have pressed send on that text. She must have run out of time and chose to send it incomplete. Right? _Right?_ She must have.

Lucifer was already on his way downstairs. The trip to the precinct was a blur and he knew he’d ran every red light on the way but he couldn’t care less. Somehow, he still couldn’t hear anything. Samantha at the front desk stuttered out the address of the bank downtown that had reported an armed robbery, when Lucifer leaned down and caught her eyes with his hypnotic gaze, and Lucifer was already on his way out the door, when she added, “Detectives Espinoza and Matthews are there already.”

He reached the bank in record time. And still he could barely hear a thing.

The blue and red lights of the police cars lit up the scene in erratic flashes, dawn being chased away by the sheer amount of them crowded in front of the bank’s entrance. Lucifer pushed through the masses of onlookers with haste, ducking beneath the yellow police tape in one smooth step, before he grabbed the first officer he could find and pushed him against the driver’s side of a van.

“Detective Espinoza, where is he?”

His tone made it clear that he expected a precise and immediate answer and the officer only swallowed once before pointing at a bigger surveillance van with its doors wide open. Lucifer wasted no time, approaching the vehicle with long strides.

“Daniel?!”

Dan’s head snapped up from where it had been buried in his hands. His expression, when he saw Lucifer was somewhere between apprehension and relief. He got up and jumped out of the back of the van, quickly making his way over to Lucifer.

“Man, what are you doing here? SWAT will be here any minute and when they storm the building, any and all civilians will have to vacate the premises.”

Before he could say any more, Lucifer’s hand caught his chin, forcing him to look him straight in the eye. “ _Where_ is Chloe, Daniel? Is she in there?”

“Yes, she is. Some guy opened fire in the bank, then triggered a lockdown and took everyone hostage. Chloe managed to send me a text before he took all their phones.” Dan fumbled his phone from his jacket pocket, holding it out for Lucifer to see, but Lucifer swatted it away.

“I got the same text, you git! She sent it to both of us! Now tell me, I presume you’ve got this whole building under surveillance. Where exactly is Chloe?”

“What?”

“Don’t test my patience, Daniel. _Where is she_?”

“All the hostages seem to be in the lobby. We managed to talk to him over the phone. He rounded up all the employees and brought them downstairs. Chloe would have been in the offices as well.”

“What does he want?”

“We’ve only spoken to him for a few seconds. He demands the death of two human rights activists, I don’t know who they are exactly. He wants proof that they’re dead in the next ten hours or he will kill all twenty-four hostages.”

Lucifer’s lip twitched up in a half-snarl as his eyes roamed over the entrance of the bank. Whoever that man was, Lucifer would teach him what it meant to be in excruciating pain. He only had to get his fingers on him.

“I’m getting Chloe out of there. Now”, he growled out and pushed past Dan, who stood completely frozen for a moment before stumbling after him, grabbing him by the sleeve of his suit jacket. For a moment, Lucifer was tempted to just keep going. Dan couldn’t hold him back, could never stop him, if he didn’t let himself be stopped. But he slowed and turned his determined gaze on the detective.

“You can’t go in there.”

“Oh, yes, I can. And I will as soon as you unhand me.”

“No, Lucifer, you can’t just stroll in there. Even if the building wasn’t locked down, the guy is armed and dangerous. Not to mention, SWAT will be here—”

“Do I look like I care, Daniel?”

“You’re putting everyone in there in danger. Including Chloe,” Dan almost yelled. “He will kill them, if we try to get in! Do you get that? Does that click somewhere in that thick skull of yours? Chloe might die!”

“That’s precisely why I will go in there and get her out!” Lucifer seethed. “I will not put her life in the hands of a couple of humans with even more guns.”

Dan’s hand moved to his sidearm in a practiced motion and Lucifer found himself down the barrel of Dan’s gun just a moment later, the cold metal pressed to the bottom of his chin. “Morningstar, I will shoot you, if you so much as _think_ about jeopardizing this operation.”

Lucifer bristled. “Do not threaten me—"

A gunshot rung out. It made both Lucifer and Dan flinch horribly but both knew it hadn’t been Dan’s gun. Their eyes flew to the entrance of the bank. Muffled screams could be heard from inside but they quickly died down to panicked sobs before everything was silent once again.

Lucifer couldn’t feel his body anymore, something was coursing through his veins, ice-cold and burning at the same time, amplifying the sound of his racing heart. Someone had been shot. A hostage had been _shot._

“Chloe,” he breathed and felt Dan take a hold of his arm once more, not to hold him back, no. It seemed Dan was trying to hold himself upright.

“She wouldn’t—she knows not to—” But Dan couldn’t get the words out. He was fearing the same thing. All of a sudden, Dan shook off the shock and spun around, eyes frantically searching for another detective. “Who was shot?” he yelled. “Get someone on the phone with that lunatic and find out what happened!”

Officers started bustling about and Lucifer still couldn’t get his body to move. She might be gone. He may have lost her. What would he do, if he had lost Chloe? What could he do? Sheer panic started to replace the numbness and he spun in circles until his gaze settled on the van next to him and he slammed his fist into the frame of the vehicle.

It bent with a crash and a groan and for a second Lucifer’s breath caught in his throat as he feared the worst. But then the pain started to race up his arm and he’d never been so happy to find his knuckles bleeding. He watched the dark red of his blood slowly run down his from his fingers to his wrist, carefully breathing in and out until he could think straight again.

Chloe was alright. At least for now. Lucifer couldn’t lose any more time. If that gun-happy idiot in there started killing off the other hostages, getting Chloe out was more pressing now than ever. But how to convince Daniel of that?

He found him in the second surveillance van, anxiously and probably unconsciously biting on his thumbnail as he stood next to another detective who was talking on the phone. The conversation was tense and it only served to make Lucifer more agitated. Dan noticed his presence and quickly avoided his gaze, focusing on the other man’s words once more.

“Will you send him out, if we exchange him for one of our officers?” he asked and paused as he listened to the answer. “No officers, alright. Okay. We can work something out. The man needs medical attention.” Another pause. “No, we haven’t forgotten about your query. We will get to that once we know your hostage isn’t in danger of losing their life.”

Lucifer didn’t have to think long, he instantly made a decision. Grabbing Dan’s arm, he pulled him closer. “Send me in.”

“What? Lucifer, this is—”

“This guy doesn’t want an officer in exchange, fine. So, offer him a civilian. Send me in!” he repeated, more vehemently.

“You’re in no way trained to handle a situation like this. _If_ he agrees to a hostage exchange, we need a professional, not some club owner,” Dan hissed.

“Daniel Espinoza,” Lucifer lowered his voice until it resembled a growl. “I swear, if you don’t send me in there right now, I will go in by myself. That is a promise.” The temperature around him rose and he consciously fought to keep his eyes from burning with the fires of Hell. Having Dan lose his wits was the last thing he needed right now.

Judging by Dan’s rapidly paling face, his anger alone seemed to be enough to scare Dan into submission. He nodded timidly and, his eyes fixed on Lucifer the entire time, he tapped the other detective on the arm to get his attention. Quickly, he explained Lucifer volunteering.

“Tell him, we can send him a civilian as an exchange hostage.”

Covering the mouthpiece of the phone, the man hissed, “Why should the perp believe that he’s not with the police?”

“Because he’s Lucifer Morningstar,” Dan argued. “He’s a local celebrity. That guy in there wants attention. He wants people to pay him notice. He’ll happily take Lucifer.”

“Fine.” He turned his back and resumed his conversation on the phone. After a few exchanged sentences, he turned back to nod at Dan and Lucifer. “Alright. We’ll send him to the entrance. Alone, yes. You get the injured hostage outside and we won’t approach until you have Mr. Morningstar inside.”

Dan listened to the exchange, his head shaking frantically accompanied by a constant mumble of _this is a bad idea, very, very bad_ but Lucifer wasted no time worrying about Dan. He’d get in, get to the Detective and get her out. Preferably immediately.

“Morningstar, you’re up.” The detective, whose name was still a mystery to Lucifer, grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the van, past several officers and an EMT at the ready. “Don’t screw this up for us. We need to get the situation under control. Sooner better than later. If the guy threatens to shoot someone, don’t play the hero. Don’t interfere. Stay quiet, draw no attention to yourself and for God’s sake don’t put anyone else in danger with your shit. You answer to me here. Me! Not to yourself and not to anyone else, is that clear?”

“Just be glad that I have other things to worry about than your need to measure certain body parts.”

“Morningstar—”

“Just shut up.” Lucifer brushed past him and approached the entrance alone. The officers and paramedics stayed behind but within shooting distance.

He didn’t have to wait in front of the barred door for long. After a minute, the bars that blocked the door from the inside began rattling upwards and a short man with graying hair and a machine gun pushed the door open.

“Don’t try anything funny!” He pointed the gun at Lucifer who held both hands out in surrender. Sweat was trickling down the man’s neck; Lucifer marked him down as the not-so-stone-cold-killer type. He was inexperienced, that much was clear. But Lucifer also noted that he had somehow managed to hack the lockdown system and controlled it with his phone.

“I won’t,” Lucifer assured. “I won’t put up a fight.”

“Stay right where you are.” He disappeared into the bank again for a few moments and returned dragging an elderly man by his arm. The man’s face was pale like ash and the blood that trickled down his fingers from where he pressed them over his shoulder stained his clothes a dark, shiny red. “Go,” the shooter ordered and pushed the man out the door. Lucifer steadied him as he stumbled and then directed him down the two steps and towards the paramedics. Then he turned back towards the shooter.

“Lead the way.”

“Oh, no, buddy. You go in front and no funny business.”

Lucifer shot him an ice-cold glare but complied. He stepped inside and waited as the guy barred the door again. Then, the barrel of the gun was pressed into his back and he let himself be led into the lobby of the bank. Secretly, he smiled. His moment would come. This guy would regret all of this very soon.

* * *

 

When she had heard the first shots, she’d been sitting across from a balding banker who’d been halfway through explaining the advantages of opening another account. Chloe had only half been listening, her mind already made up. The hots had ripped her from her thoughts, her instincts kicking in immediately. She reached for her firearm but quickly remembered that she hadn’t brought it to her bank appointment.

Screams had reached them from downstairs and her mind had whirled at a hundred miles per hour, trying to figure out what to do. The banker had half crawled underneath the desk, when suddenly the lockdown had been triggered, bars rattling down over the windows.

Now she stood there, frozen in panic, when she really knew that she shouldn’t. She was trained for these kinds of situations, but it didn’t seem to matter. All she could think about was Trixie.

Another shot shocked her into motion, then. She pulled out her phone and almost finished dialing the precinct, when she figured that they’d find out sooner or later anyway.

No, what she needed to do, was reach someone else.

As fast as she could she began typing. Her fingers shook but autocorrect cleaned up her scrambled-up words. Another shot rang out, way closer, right in the hallway in front of the office.

She panicked. How to finish that stupid text? What was she supposed to say, if these were her last words?

Chloe gave up trying to find the right words, when the next shot splintered the wood of the doorframe, the bullet thankfully getting stuck. Without thinking about it any further, Chloe pressed on Lucifer’s number as a recipient, then quickly added Dan as well and pressed _send_ right as the door flew open. She dropped the phone, feeling it bounce off her foot, and rushed to raise both hands in the air.

The man with the machine gun was in his early fifties, she guessed but she could be wrong. He had a manic sort of glint in his eye and Chloe swallowed hard to keep her growing panic in check.

“Out of there, right now!” he ordered and motioned with the gun towards the hallway. “Down to the lobby!”

Chloe glanced at the banker, begging him silently to just go along with it. He was crying, his hands in the air shaking so badly, that he could barely keep them up. Chloe didn’t protest and exited the office.

The shooter rounded up everyone in the building and gathered them all in the lobby of the bank. He forced them to sit on the ground, the machine gun pointed right at them the entire time. It made Chloe incredibly uneasy. She wished for her own gun.

“Here is how this works! None of you try any funny business and no one will get hurt. I imagine the police will be here soon, so I locked down the building as a precaution.” He held up his smartphone triumphantly. Chloe frowned a little. Had that guy managed to hack the security systems?

“Once they are here, I will make my demands and as long as the police cooperates, you will all be fine, capiche?” A few nodded, a woman sobbed. “Do try to shut up, you, before it annoys me.”

Oh boy, this could get ugly really, really fast.

It didn’t take long before sirens could be heard outside and as the shooter went to peer out the windows, Chloe quietly scooted across the floor to the sobbing woman. With on hand on her back rubbing up and down, she tried to calm her. It helped minimally.

They all flinched, when the phone behind the front desk rang. Chloe knew it had to be the police. They would ask for any demands and get them out safely as fast as they could. With his gun raised at them, the man hurried to answer the phone and began talking to the officer on the other end in hushed whispers. Chloe couldn’t make out more than a few words.

After a minute or so, he hung up the phone and returned to the group huddling on the ground. ”And now we wait.”

“Please, sir,” a man behind Chloe suddenly spoke up. “You don’t have to do this. We have families. Kids at home.”

“Shut up! No comments from the peanut gallery, understood?”

“But sir,” he tried again and Chloe wished he would just stop. She wanted to tell him to leave it be but every training she ever had for these situations had conditioned her to not draw attention to herself.

“Are you hard of hearing?” The shooter stepped up to the man and pushed the barrel of his gun against his chest. “I said to be fucking quiet.”

“We just want to go home.”

“I don’t give a shit about what you want. I have a mission and I will not abandon it until my dying breath. So, sit tight and shut up!” He emphasized his words with a push against the man’s chest.

“You’re crazy.”

Chloe flinched at the man’s words. She knew he had crossed a line. The shooter wasn’t thinking straight but he wasn’t dumb. Insulting him would only serve to anger him.

The shot that rang out made her ears ring. She could barely make out the screams that came from most other hostages, the sounds muffled to a point where she feared it might have damaged her eardrum. Heart beating out of her chest, she cowered on the ground, not daring to move a muscle, in case the guy was trigger-happy. She thought about her daughter and could feel tears starting to roll down her face. Forcing herself to think about something else, she chanced a look through over her shoulder.

The guy that had spoken was on the floor, one hand clutching at the bleeding bullet wound on his right upper arm. He groaned and sobbed but he was alive and the wound wasn’t lethal as long as he kept pressure on it and got some medical attention soon.

“Shit!” Brandishing the gun like a sword, the shooter yelled. “Now look what you made me do! All of you need to stay fucking calm or I—I will be forced to keep doing this.”

The phone rang. It was only a slight relief. Chloe watched the shooter talk to the detective on the other end agitatedly and he seemed to grow even angrier but apparently, they came to some sort of agreement. From what Chloe could understand, he had bought into a hostage exchange. The shooter escorted the injured man to the entrance door and Chloe frantically searched her surroundings for anything that could help her in this impossible situation but of course, there was nothing. Nothing at all.

It had been such a long time since she had been this alone on the job. Now, she usually had Lucifer to have her back. She’d really gotten used to that.

Her breath caught in her throat, when the shooter returned with his new hostage.

Speak of the literal Devil.

“No,” she whispered. “No, no, no.” This couldn’t be true. She cursed herself for wishing he was here just a minute ago. Now she wanted him gone. She wanted him out there, safe and sound and not down the barrel of a gun. Why had he agreed to this? Why did he have this stupid need to put himself in danger all the time?

“Go sit.”

Lucifer was pushed towards the group of hostages and he complied, gracefully sinking down with his legs crossed. He seemed at ease; his eyes, however, were cold as ice. They had found Chloe immediately, and although Chloe saw the relief on his face, she also saw the pure wrath that was carefully hidden underneath the façade.

“From now on, none of you move a fucking muscle! I also don’t want to hear another word. Is that clear?”

No one dared to answer.

The young woman next to Chloe began sobbing in earnest again and Chloe had no way of calming her down. Lucifer shot Chloe a glance, then he focused on the crying woman and Chloe swore he looked like he wanted to shut her up himself. He began pushing his way across the floor, the hostages parting for him like every crowd did.

The gunman had turned away, closer to the windows now, trying to gauge the situation outside, his gun always at the ready.

When Lucifer reached her, Chloe immediately grabbed him by the front of his dress shirt, hissing, “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Getting you out, of course. Now, come on, we don’t have all day.”

“What? No, Lucifer. We can’t risk it. He’ll shoot us, if we try to leave. He might even shoot the others, if we actually make it out. So, we’re staying.”

“I beg to differ. You’re not staying here. No way.” Lucifer grabbed her upper arm and began pulling her through the group, while the shooter was still distracted, hiding behind two taller guys at the back.

“Lucifer, please, listen. This is dangerous—”

“Exactly my point.”

“—and leaving is not an option.”

Suddenly, the shooter stalked back towards the group. The sobbing woman tried to hold her breath but she couldn’t hold in her whimpers. The man’s eyes found her immediately and he stepped up to her, one hand grabbed her blouse and pulled her up. “Shut up, or I swear I’ll make you!”

“No, please”, she sobbed. “I’m sorry, I don’t want to—I didn’t mean to—"

“I said _shut up_!”

She only sobbed harder as he yelled and tried to pull away from him, but the grip he had on her blouse was tight. “Please, sir, I don’t want to die.”

“Too bad you annoy the hell out of me, then.”

Her screams filled the lobby as he began to drag her away from the group, his hand quickly moving from her blouse to her hair. Screams of terror turned into screams of pain and Chloe found herself moving forward but a hand pulled her back. Lucifer’s grip was like a vice. No matter how hard she tried to pull away, his arm didn’t give in. Not even an inch.

“Lucifer, please,” she pleaded. “We can help her.”

“And how would you go about doing that?” he hissed. “There’s nothing you can do.”

The shooter had dragged the girl all the way across the room towards the ATMs, where he threw her down on the ground. Her whimpers echoed from the walls. Chloe’s chest constricted painfully.

“Lucifer…”

“No, Chloe!”

The gunshot shook Chloe as if it had hit her. Her hand flew up to cover her mouth as she saw the slow-blooming red adorning the pristine white blouse. Screams surrounded her as the girl’s limp body hit the floor. Because that was what she was. A girl. Barely over twenty.

“God will reward me. God will forgive me.” Gently putting the gun on the ground next to him, the man kneeled before the dead girl, his hands clasped before him in prayer. Chloe felt Lucifer’s grip tighten. The group around them began to grow restless, whimpers and sobs but also angry voices growing louder.

“That’s it. We’re leaving.” Lucifer pulled Chloe backwards, away from the group, while the shooter was still distracted by his prayer. For a moment, Chloe was too stunned to fight him, her mind whirling, her stomach rebelling at the sight of the dead girl. When Lucifer pulled her to her feet, though, she resurfaced.

“No, Lucifer, what are you doing?”

“Getting you out.”

He pulled her around the corner into the next hallway, a couple of eyes following them. The shooter, still on the ground, now rocked back and forth, murmuring like a madman. Chloe began to fight Lucifer for real.

“We can’t—”

“Oh, yes, we can. I will not watch him shoot you.”

“But those people—”

“I don’t care!”

They were out of sight now but Chloe still heard the others. “Lucifer, please let me—” But she didn’t get the chance to finish her plea, when suddenly the air was ripped from her lungs.

Next thing she knew, Chloe found herself on cold cement, but she could not for the life of her tell which way was down anymore. Her sense of gravity was all over the place and she felt her stomach protest immensely.

“Lucifer—” His hands were on her waist still. She didn’t know _what_ he did exactly but whatever it was, she would make him promise to never do it again because, holy shit, she never wanted to feel this dizzy again.

“I’m here. It’s okay. Breathe,” Lucifer murmured quietly. Chloe blindly reached for his arms holding her and tried to shove them away but he held on.

“Let go!” Chloe ordered. “Lucifer, what did you do? Let me go!”

“I’m sorry, Chloe. I had to get you out of there. I needed you to be safe.”

And Chloe realized that was exactly what he had done. He had gotten her out of the bank. Although everything was still spinning, she could tell they weren’t inside anymore. She could hear cars on the road, the cement underneath her felt clammy, almost wet from the rain and a breeze was tugging at her hair.

“No—” She choked. “Lucifer, we have to—I have to get back! Those people are still in danger.”

“But you’re safe!”

“Where are we?” She blinked rapidly to clear her vision and it helped, however minimally. “How did we get here?”

“Just a couple blocks away. I flew us out.”

“You flew—” Chloe didn’t finish that thought. She tried but it got stuck somewhere along the way on the fact that, oh _shit_ , Lucifer really had wings. Lucifer, the Devil, had wings. He could fly. Sure, he’d mentioned them before, back when she thought all of his Devil talk was just make-belief and metaphors, and she’d written it off as just that. Then he’d mentioned them back in Vegas on Halloween but other things had been on her mind. After that she had taken his word for it, had nodded, when he’d said he’d rather not show her. But he had _never_ mentioned that he could _fly_ as in teleport several blocks in the blink of an eye.

“Chloe? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Just a bit dizzy,” she waved him off and he reluctantly let go of her, then offered his hand to help her stand. Finally, she could look him in the eye and suddenly her anger rose. “How could you do that?”

“What?”

“How could you just go against my word like that? I’m not even going to touch that you just _flew_ me out of there, not with a ten-foot pole, but seriously, Lucifer? I asked you not to and you did it anyways!”

“What else was I supposed to do? Wait until he decided to shoot you as well?”

“Maybe you could have respected my choice to stay?”

Lucifer’s eyes hardened and Chloe felt heat begin to permeate the air around them. “I will not apologize for what I did.”

“Why? Too high and mighty for that?” Chloe spat and she knew she was testing his temper, when the heat spiked. It once again made her realize that he wasn’t just a man, wasn’t human but infinitely more, and his capacity for anger could not be measured in human terms.

“I told you, I will not watch you die. Not when I can stop it. So, be angry with me all you want.” He took a step back, spreading his arms wide. “I’m done here.”

“No!” Chloe exclaimed. “No, you’re not! Take me back there!”

Lucifer scoffed, averting his gaze, but Chloe closed the distance between them in two determined steps, taking hold of the front of his shirt. He stared down at her hand as if he was trying to decide, whether to rip it off or not. Up close, the air was even hotter and Chloe felt her instincts kicking in, telling her of the danger in front of her but she ignored them.

“Get me back inside the bank. Right now, Lucifer.”

“No.”

With her free hand she hit his chest, not very hard at first but when it got absolutely no reaction from him, she began pounding her fist into his chest again and again. “Take me back! You idiot, take me back!”

“I will _not_ aid you in running straight to your sure death, Detective.”

She let go of him, then, her fingers losing all their strength, and she looked into his dark eyes and found them cold and void of any compassion. “What about all those people? The shooter probably noticed that we’re gone already. What if he decides to take out the hostages? Lucifer, what if they all die because we’re not there anymore?”

“How many of them would have saved me, huh, Detective? And how many of them, do you think, would have happily left me to die?” Lucifer tilted his head, scrutinizing for her reaction. “The world isn’t kind to me, so why should I be kind in return?”

“Then why save _me_?”

“Because you’re _not like_ _them_!”

“I am human, Lucifer, just like them. And I care about human life, which is why I will do anything to get them out.” It was a last effort to get Lucifer to cave but he stayed silent, a muscle in his jaw twitching. Chloe realized she was losing time. She could still save those hostages, with or without Lucifer’s help. She just had to get back to the bank. “You’re not going to help me?” she asked as a last try, and when he shook his head, she stepped past him. “Fine.”

“Where are you going?” He turned, looking after her as her quick steps took her to the mouth of the alley, where she looked left and right, orienting herself before turning right, breaking into a run.

She had left one block behind her, when a sudden dizzy spell hit her and she had to stop for a moment, her hand on her knees until the world stopped spinning. Suddenly he was beside her again. “You aren’t going back, are you?”

“Of course, I am,” Chloe responded, gritting her teeth and resumed running, leaving Lucifer standing at the corner. He didn’t follow but she swore she could feel his eyes burn on her back. It made the hairs in her neck stand on end.

* * *

 

Dan stepped out of the surveillance van and ducked underneath the yellow tape that surrounded the area, then weaved his way through the onlookers and around the corner of the next building, where blissful quiet awaited him. He had needed to get away for a bit. It was all just too much. The shooter had opened fire shortly after Lucifer had entered the building and, from another phone call they’d had with the perp, they knew a woman was dead. Then they’d heard more shots fired but they had no way of knowing what was going on. The shooter wasn’t answering the phone anymore and the Detective in charge had ordered SWAT to get ready. They would enter the building by force as soon as the order was given. And Dan guessed it would be given soon. They couldn’t really afford to wait much longer with people’s lives on the line.

He tried his best not to think about how Chloe’s life was one of those. And Lucifer’s now, too. Who knew, they could already be dead. Tears pricked at his eyes and he closed them, pressing his thumb and pointer finger against his lids.

“Dan!”

He whirled around so fast, he stumbled but caught himself. Chloe’s hands held onto his forearms, steadying him and her touch was the only thing telling him that this was most likely not a hallucination. “Chloe, what—how?”

“No time for that, Dan. Tell me what happened? After he shot that woman, what happened?”

“Chloe, how did you get out?!”

“Dan!”

“How, Chloe?”

“Lucifer got me out, okay?” Chloe’s look conveyed her growing impatience. “But I have to get back in there, so I need to know what’s going on.”

“You’re not going back in! Are you nuts?!”

“Those people in there might die because of me, Dan. Don’t you get that? Why doesn’t anyone get that?”

“I don’t know how Lucifer got you out but I’m glad he did. You’re safe, okay? And we can work on helping those people from out here,” Dan emphasized, then he realized someone was missing. “Wait. Where is Lucifer? He’s not still in there, is he?”

“No, he’s not. He left.” Her words were harsh and Dan knew Chloe well enough to know that there was more to it but he didn’t push.

The radio on his shoulder crackled to life, making him jerk out of Chloe’s hold. _“Espinoza! Where the fuck are you? We got him on the phone!”_

Dan hurried to press the talk button. “What’s going on in there?”

_“Apparently two hostages have disappeared, one of them your civilian consultant. They’ve hidden somewhere in the building. Our perp locked the remaining hostages in the vaults and now he wants to search the bank. He says he’ll kill them on sight, when he finds them.”_

“Shit, Chloe,” Dan gasped, then pressed the button again. “What’s the plan?”

_“We’re trying to mobilize SWAT, now that he’s not in the foyer anymore. With the hostages unattended, we might be able to get them out.”_

“No,” Chloe breathed. “No, Dan, as soon as SWAT tries to bypass the lockdown or breaks down a door, he’ll be alerted. They have no way of knowing where he actually is. He could be in the vaults. He could kill them all before SWAT even makes it all the way in.”

Dan threw his hands up. “I know! But what else are we supposed to do?”

“I have to get back in there.”

“That’s impossible, Chloe! Not to mention that I won’t put your life on the line like that!” Dan tried to get through to her.

“You won’t change your mind, huh, Detective?” Dan spun around and came face to face with Lucifer but the consultant’s eyes were fixed on Chloe, seemingly disregarding him entirely. “You won’t, no matter what we say?”

“No, Lucifer, I won’t. Those people are in danger because of us. So, I need to get back in there.” Chloe crossed her arms in front of her chest and Dan knew it was a lost battle.

“Chloe…” he tried again but Lucifer interrupted him.

“Fine.”

Chloe’s eyes grew wide. “What?”

“I said _fine_. We’re going back in. You better take the offer before I change my mind.”

“Guys,” Dan spoke up. “Neither of you are going back in there. Even if I had a way of getting you in, I wouldn’t do it.”

Lucifer’s eyes found him for the first time since he’d appeared and Dan had to fight the urge to shrink away at the intensity in his gaze. Gone was the playboy, replaced by a man Dan would think twice about crossing.

“Give her your gun and radio.”

“What?”

“Am I having trouble enunciating, today? Gun and radio, _now_.”

Dan fumbled to get the gun out of its holster—somewhere in the back of his head he wondered why he wasn’t fighting this more—and handed it over along with the radio. Chloe clipped the radio onto her belt, checked the gun for ammo, and then looked between Lucifer and Dan.

“I’m ready.”

Dan huffed. “Great. And I still have no way of getting you in there.”

“Don’t worry, Daniel.” Lucifer grimaced and stepped past him. “I’ve got it covered.” His arms closed around Chloe’s waist and—

They were gone.

A small gust of wind ruffled Dan’s clothes. His heart seemed to stop for a few seconds before skyrocketing back into service, beating frantically in a rhythm unknown to anyone. Slowly, like raindrops, thoughts began trickling into his mind.

Lucifer Morningstar. The man who believed himself to be the Devil. The man who had just disappeared into thin air.

If Dan’s arms hadn’t felt like lead in that moment, he would have crossed himself.

* * *

 

Chloe stumbled and would have face-planted, had it not been for Lucifer holding her around the waist. Flying with an angel would _never_ be on her list of preferred travel. She knew nothing that was this nauseating.

“Are you okay?” he asked clipped.

“Yeah, I’m good. Give me a second.” She pushed him away and tried to get an idea of her surroundings. They were standing in front of the ATMs, around the corner from the lobby. Everything was silent, her own heartbeat currently the loudest thing around. “You just flew away right in front of Dan.”

“Yes, I suppose that was a little short-sighted and I’ll deal with the fallout, I’m sure. But let’s focus on the slightly more pressing issue.”

“Right. Do you know where he is?” Chloe whispered and peered around the pillar into the lobby carefully, her gun at the ready.

“I’m not an idiot detector. How am I supposed to know?”

“Sorry, I just thought maybe you had some way of knowing.”

“We really need to talk about what I can and can’t do now that you believe me.”

Chloe made a throat-cutting motion to shut him up. “Not now, Lucifer!”

The lobby was empty as far as she could tell. As quietly as she could, she took a few steps into the open space, constantly alert of any and all signs that they weren’t alone. Lucifer was right behind her, she knew, but he was silent as a panther.

Another step later, her eyes fell on the body of the young woman. Blood had formed a puddle around her limbs, her eyes stared unseeingly at the ceiling. A pang of guilt shot through Chloe’s chest but she knew it hadn’t been her fault. She couldn’t have stopped him from taking the shot.

Nodding towards the barred door, she asked, “Can you open that?”

Lucifer inclined his head and crossed the short distance to the door in three strides. He crouched, gripping the bars at the bottom, and ripped them upwards. With a groan of metal, they gave in. The electronics in the wall sparked and died.

“There.” Lucifer returned to Chloe’s side. “Now what?”

“Okay, I think we should split up.”

“I already hate this plan. Surely, you can come up with a better idea, Detective.”

“Lucifer, the hostages are in the vaults and the shooter is prowling around the building somewhere. He’s alone. You could take care of him, couldn’t you?”

“I’m not bullet proof with you around.”

“But you’re not exactly a pushover. You could—” She motioned around her own face and hoped he would understand without her having to explain further.

“You want me to walk around with my Devil face on display? Is that it?”

“Yes.”

“What if he just starts shooting?”

“You can fly, Lucifer,” Chloe dissed.

He threw his arms up. “And my reaction time of course is short enough to evade bullets,” Lucifer hissed sarcastically. “Detective, for the last time, I’m not some action hero! This is ridiculous!”

“You once plucked a bullet out of thin air!”

“That was only with Amenadiel’s help.”

“You want to punish this guy or not?”

Lucifer’s mouth snapped shut, his jaw clenched tightly. He nodded stiffly, the look in his eyes a promise of violence. It almost made Chloe shiver.

“I’ll go get the hostages out of the vaults and through the lobby outside. After that I’ll come find you, okay?” She waited for his nod and started to turn away, when he spoke up once more.

“How far am I allowed to go?”

“What?”

“In what condition do you need him?” Lucifer clarified.

Chloe’s throat closed up a little. Maybe setting Lucifer on this guy wasn’t the very best idea. After all, she was setting the _Devil_ on someone. Lucifer’s violent streak was no secret to her anymore and she knew he could do some considerable damage, if he wanted to. And now he was asking _her_ how far he could go. This perp’s fate lay in her hands. How was it fair that she had this much power over someone as powerful as Lucifer?

Her eyes wandered over to the body of the woman again. Her chest ached with unveiled anger and she made up her mind right then.

“We need him alive.”

Chloe knew it was essentially the go-ahead for Lucifer to drive the man insane; images of Jimmy Barnes emerged before her inner eye.

A sinister smile crossed Lucifer’s face and he started walking backwards towards the stairs that led up to the offices, his eyes fixed on Chloe’s. “As you wish, Detective.” With that he turned around and jogged up the stairs, a Devil on a mission. Chloe shrugged off any possible second thoughts and turned on her heel as well, quickly but still constantly alert making her way through the halls towards the vaults.

Methodically, she began quietly knocking on vault door after vault door, hoping the hostages would be able to make themselves known. If not, she’d just have to open them all. She got lucky.

On the second door, she found the wheel that opened the door not all the way closed. Clicking the safety on, she stashed the gun in her waistband and began spinning the wheel until the heavy door swung open.

Shrieks greeted her, the hostages obviously expecting someone else but she hurried to shush them. “It’s alright. Don’t panic. I’m with the LAPD.” A few hopeful sighs followed that statement. “It’s safe now. Come on, we’re getting you out of the building. Anyone hurt?”

“No.” A woman in the front shook her head.

“Okay, then, quickly, follow me.”

Chloe pulled the gun out again and took lead of the group on the way back to the lobby. Just as the collective group reached the entrance hall, a bloodcurdling scream sounded from somewhere upstairs. Chloe froze, whipping her gun in the direction of the stairs.

“Guess he found him,” Chloe breathed out. That scream hadn’t been Lucifer’s, so it was safe to guess that their perp was out of the picture for now. Turning to the scared group of hostages, she spoke up, “It’s fine, my partner has it under control. Go! The door is open, make your way outside and inform the officers that the situation has been resolved.”

Then she retreated towards the stairs. She had to find Lucifer before the building was swarmed with police. She did so in the office that she’d had her appointment in earlier.

The shooter was on the floor, pressed against the wall beneath the windows. Tears streaked his face, his entire body shook, the machine gun lay abandoned directly at his feet. His arms were both bent in an impossible angle. Broken, most likely. Lucifer was sitting in the chair behind the desk, a few feet away, spinning lazily in circles. When he faced Chloe, he stopped, tilting his head to the side with a triumphant smile. His eyes were deep red.

“There you go, Detective.”

“Lucifer, are you alright?”

Lucifer averted his gaze and refused her an answer. He fixed the shooter with his stare and the man whimpered and shrunk away further at the sight of the Devil’s eyes. “Any chance of getting him out of my sight, Detective?”

“They—they should be up here soon.”

On cue, the sound of running steps approached. Seconds later, Dan appeared in the doorframe, out of breath and pale as a sheet. “Chloe? Oh, thank God—” He froze, when he caught sight of Lucifer, whose eyes were thankfully brown again.

Chloe, anticipating a freak-out, quickly stepped towards him. “It’s all good, Dan. Come on, let’s get out of here. Someone else can take care of the shooter.”

“Chloe…”

“I know, Dan, I know. It’s fine.” She ushered Dan backwards, out the door and into the hallway, just as a group of armed officers appeared, pushing into the room. One of them raged about the machine gun still being in the man’s reach but Chloe heard Lucifer say, “Don’t fret, he won’t move. He’d regret it immensely. Get him out of here. And maybe have someone look at his injuries.”

Dan gripped Chloe’s arms tightly. “Chloe, what is going on?”

“Dan—”

“He’s—Chloe, Lucifer just—” His eyes suddenly fixated on something behind Chloe and she turned to see her partner. He seemed apprehensive and didn’t approach any further. From the corner of her eyes, Chloe saw Dan hastily cross himself and cringed inwardly. Lucifer saw, too, and his expression turned sour. With a simple nod, he then walked down the hallway towards the stairs.

“Lucifer! Lucifer, wait!” Chloe jogged after him. He didn’t slow down, didn’t turn to look at her and she struggled to keep up with his long strides. “Come on, Lucifer, hold up.”

“I’m done here, Detective.”

“No, please—Would you just stop!” Chloe yelled and grabbed his arm to pull him to a stop but it was in vain. He was like a meteor caught by earth’s gravity, unstoppable in every way. She tried to put all her weight into it but he just pulled her along. She was forced to let go, if she wanted to avoid falling over.

He stalked away, without even glancing back to her. Chloe knew, he wasn’t ready to talk. She’d give him some time but she would not let him avoid talking about it altogether.

 _Later_ , she thought. There was always later.

* * *

 

She found him on his balcony but not with a tumbler in hand, all suave and lean. No, he was leaning on the railing with both arms, his head hung low between his shoulders. Every line of his body radiated defeat and for a moment Chloe second-guessed her decision to confront him. She could always come back another day once all that had happened today had blown over.

But she quickly threw that idea out the window. Last time she’d avoided him nothing good had come out of it.

“Lucifer?” she announced herself, but she was already pretty sure that he knew she was there. He didn’t react immediately but when she stepped closer until she stood next to him at the railing, he straightened up with a little sigh, lifting his head to gaze at the city.

“What can I do for you, Detective?”

“I’m not here because I want something from you, Lucifer. I’m here to talk.” At his scoff, she clarified, “I’m was worried, Lucifer. Please talk to me.”

“And what exactly is it that you wish me to talk about?”

“What happened with the shooter?”

His head snapped to the side and she swore there was a flash of red in his irises as his angry eyes landed on her. She blinked and fought the urge to take a step back. After Vegas she had told herself that she was fine with it. He was the Devil and Chloe Decker could deal with that. But moments like these, when his anger filled the space around him like a living, breathing entity—those moments still pushed her mind precariously close to the edge.

“I dealt with him, didn’t I?”

“You did. Thank you,” she breathed. “I just—I was wondering if you talked to him at all. We couldn’t get a lot out of him after you were done with him.”

“I’m surprised you got anything from him _at all_. Tell me,” he pushed himself up until he stood straight but still held on to the railing with both hands. “Tell me that he won’t ever hurt anyone again.”

“He won’t. His actions today will put him behind bars for the rest of his life.”

Lucifer grimaced a little but nodded. “And hopefully for his afterlife as well.” His eyes wandered to the darkening sky. “I swear, if that cretin ends up in Heaven, you bastard, you’ll hear from me.”

It took Chloe a moment or two to realize who he was addressing and it boggled her mind only slightly, thank you very much. She decided to focus on something else. “What do you mean? Is there a chance someone like him will go to Heaven?”

“Someone like him,” Lucifer spat. “If he believes himself to be righteous, his actions have no impact on which direction he’s heading after death.”

“But he killed—”

“Yes, well, the system is very flawed.” Lucifer turned away and retreated into the darkness of his penthouse, leaving Chloe on the balcony. She took a few seconds to digest what he’d just told her but came to the conclusions that she had more questions than answers, so she followed him. Slouching on the couch, he absentmindedly spun an unlit cigarette in his fingers.

Chloe was about to ask him for clarification but he spoke unprompted. “I did speak to him. Before I reduced him to his last functioning brain cell, that is. I asked him what he desired.”

“And that was?”

“To purge this earth of every single person who didn’t worship God,” Lucifer recited with barely veiled anger in his voice. “He believed himself to be God’s soldier. He believed that his actions were entirely justified. If he’s still convinced of that once he shuffles off this mortal coil, he will not end up in Hell. That’s how screwed up the system is. Only if he feels guilty about it, it will drag him downstairs.”

“But—but why doesn’t God do anything about that? Why would he just let him run around—”

“That’s the beauty of free will,” Lucifer sneered. “ _Thou mayest rule over sin._ It means the choice between good and evil lies in the hands of every individual. There is _always_ a choice. And, according to some, there’s always a chance for redemption, Detective.”

“Chloe.” It was a reflex to correct him but there was no real emphasis behind it. She was too distracted by this revelation.

“Chloe,” he complied. “Believe me, I know it’s not fair. Hell, I’ve yelled at my old man more times that I can be bothered to count. Most recently the last three hours before you arrived. He won’t change a thing.” He let out an angry growl. “What’s even worse is that _I_ had to be the one to clean up the mess. His supposed worshippers go on killing sprees and who is stopping them? The Devil. If that’s not the biggest joke I’ve ever heard…”

“But you did stop him. You punished him, right? You showed him your face?” Chloe collapsed onto the couch next to him. “Won’t that make him regret?”

“You think just because he looked the Devil in the face that he’ll feel guilty about killing people? He believes in God, ergo he believes what everyone says about me. Who knows, maybe he’ll end up thinking he faced the Devil as a test and came out on top. Zealots like him come up with crazy theories all the time.”

Chloe didn’t know what to say. How was any of that fair? She thought she could begin to understand Lucifer’s anger at his father, though she guessed there was a lot more to it that she could fathom. She sat silently and Lucifer didn’t speak up again, either. Outside, the sun sank beyond the horizon for good and the penthouse was plunged in darkness and still no one spoke. Eventually, Chloe put her thoughts into some semblance of order and focused on the good parts.

“We did save those people, though,” she said. “If we hadn’t gone back in, he might have killed them all.” She looked over at him, trying to make out his expression in the dark. “You saved them.”

“I didn’t do it for them.”

Chloe’s mouth opened but forming words was beyond her for a moment. She swallowed and tried again. “What do you mean?”

“I did it for you. I went back in for you. Because you said so.”

She could only nod. “Thank you, Lucifer.”

He was quiet for a moment but then he spoke and it was almost too faint for Chloe to hear. “It scared me.”

“What did?”

He took a deep breath. “I got you out of that bank because I couldn’t stand to see you in danger. I couldn’t stand to lose you, especially now that—now that you _know_. I got you out and that should have been it. That was all I desired.” He huffed out a bitter laugh. “But you said jump and what did I do? I jumped.” His eyes met hers and even in the dark Chloe could see the apprehension in his. “The last time I followed orders that blindly was when I was still my father’s soldier. A mindless pawn that he shoved around the board. When I rebelled, I swore to only ever be my own man from then on. I swore to never follow orders that I didn’t want to follow. And now look at me.”

“Lucifer,” Chloe spoke up softly. “I’m not your father. You don’t ever have to do what I say, especially not if you don’t agree with me.”

“I’m not saying you are. All I’m saying is that I submitted myself to your will so easily, it scares me. There are not a lot of things that scare me nowadays. But out of the few things that do, well,” he hesitated for a beat, “the lion’s share concerns you.”

“But I’m just me. Just Chloe. I’m nothing special—and you are the Devil, an archangel, right? You don’t need to concern yourself with me at all, if you don’t want to.”

“Oh, but Chloe, I do.”

It sounded like a confession and maybe it was. The words hung between them, almost tangible, and Chloe knew just how hard it was for Lucifer to open up like this. She knew, her reaction right now could very well mean the world to him. So, she did what she always did, when she was dealing with challenging situations: she followed her gut.

She could tell, when her lips met his, that he had not been prepared for it. Even less prepared than he’d been on the beach that day. It seemed so long ago now. She carefully cupped his cheek in her hand and felt him relax a minimal amount. Then she felt his hands on both her cheeks and couldn’t help but smile into the kiss.

Pulling back, only the tiniest bit of space between their lips, she admitted, “Me, too, Lucifer.”

She hoped he understood. She cared, too. She was scared of losing him, too. She felt the same way he did. Things between them, their relationship, it was terrifying for both of them. But the fact that neither was ready to let go was proof enough for Chloe that it was worth it.

Lucifer pressed his forehead against hers, his hands holding her face tenderly still, as if he was scared to break her between his palms. A glance through her eyelashes showed that he had his eyes squeezed shut, and if she saw a tear escape from the corner of his eye, she didn’t comment on it.

“How?” he breathed and pulled back, his hands falling from her face with sudden heaviness.

“How what?”

“How can you still kiss me after seeing my face?” He opened his eyes, then, to study hers.

“You know I don’t fear it.”

“But I’m—”

“I don’t care how different you are. Lucifer, the things that happened to you don’t define you. Only you can do that. So, yeah, maybe you have another face and today firmly reminded me that you have wings as well, but that doesn’t change the man I got to know.”

A smile tried to tug at his lips but it lost the fight to a frown. “I scared Dan away, though, didn’t I?”

To be entirely honest, Chloe had forgotten about Dan in the last few hours. But yes, he hadn’t been easy to calm down. “He’ll deal, Lucifer. He got a good scare, when we vanished into thin air, but he’ll come around.”

“He’s still sane?”

Chloe nodded. “He’s barely any worse for wear. Though I fear he’s not quite reached the stage of acceptance. He’s somewhere between denial and anger.”

“Then there may still be hope. However, he was angry with me already for Charlotte’s death. This little revelation will only make it worse, will it not?”

Chloe got up from the couch and held out a hand. “Come on. Let’s see, if we can get him to come around.”

“I sincerely doubt he will want to see me right now.”

* * *

 

Dan almost slammed the door of his apartment into Chloe’s face, when he saw Lucifer standing behind her.

“This was a bad idea,” Lucifer said immediately and turned to go but Chloe caught his wrist and pulled him back. She almost flinched and let him go, when she realized she was once again forcing him to do something he may not want to do but she steeled herself and held on to him tightly. He had already followed her all the way here after all.

With her free hand she knocked on the door. “Dan, please, open up.”

“No! _Mierda_ , Chloe! What did you bring _him_ here for?” His voice was muffled through the door but it was obviously shaking.

She glanced at Lucifer who just shrugged and reached out his hand towards the doorknob. “I could just…” He waved his hand a little and Chloe considered his offer and decided to just go with it. Stepping aside, she motioned for Lucifer to go ahead and she watched him close his hand around the knob. There was a quiet click and he pushed the door open.

“What the—” Dan scrambled backwards, words lost to him.

Lucifer held up both hands as he stepped inside slowly. “I just want to talk, Dan. I don’t mean you any harm.”

“What would you possibly want to talk about? I don’t believe a fucking word you say!”

“Dan,” Chloe stepped past Lucifer, the door closed behind her. “Please, let’s just go sit down and talk. I swear, it’s alright.”

“I won’t sit down with a fucking murderer!”

Lucifer tensed at the words but didn’t comment and Chloe was grateful for it but at the same time she felt anger bubbling inside of her on his behalf. “Dan, he’s not what you think. He’s not a murderer, he’s not a liar and he’s most definitely not evil.”

“Because of him Charlotte is dead.” He looked past Chloe at Lucifer. “What’s your agenda, huh? What do you want from us?”

“It’s not like that. I’m not here to steal your souls, I’m not here to tempt you or trick you.”

“Then why?”

“I just didn’t want to stay in Hell any longer.”

Dan flinched a little. “You’re the—you are the literal Devil. You rule Hell. Why wouldn’t you want to be there?”

“I didn’t rule it by choice. Please, Dan, you must understand that most things you’ve heard about me are untrue. I was cast out, yes, but not because I was evil. My sin was wanting free will and I got it at the price of becoming the Lord of Hell. I was a jailer, a punisher of evil and yes, I found pleasure in it after a few millennia. But I never sought to do harm.”

“How am I supposed to believe that?”

“You know he doesn’t lie, Dan,” Chloe emphasized. “He’s told us thee truth from day one. We just never believed.”

“Then why not prove it? If you could have just shown us that little disappearing act the entire time, why play along when we all thought you were a method actor?”

“Well, first of all, when we met, I could not have shown you _that disappearing act_. Circumstances were a little complicated. But mostly I didn’t show you because I feared you would react exactly like this.” Lucifer’s eyes were downcast, his voice small.

Dan bit his lip, a sure sign he was trying to figure things out for himself, and Chloe decided to take the opportunity to gently guide him through the door to his living room. She sat him on the couch and he didn’t fight it. Lucifer followed them but remained standing.

Dan looked up at Chloe, then, his eyes suddenly mistrusting. “How long have you known, Chloe?”

“I found out when Pierce died,” Chloe explained. “And then, as you know, I didn’t talk to Lucifer for a bit but then Vegas happened and well, it put things into perspective for me. Please, Dan, if you don’t want to take his word for it, take mine. He’s not evil. He’s just Lucifer, the exact same guy we got to know.”

Dan huffed out a strained laugh. “The Devil steals my pudding to wind me up.”

“I’m not going to stop just because you’re in the know now.”

Chloe shook her head fondly. “See? He’s still a pain in your ass. The only thing that’s changed is that you now know that he’s a bit older than he looks.”

“Oh, shit, I hadn’t even thought about that.” Dan buried his head in his hands. “And your family—you always rant about your father—and Amenadiel, oh, fuck—”

“Don’t lose it now, Daniel, you were doing so well.”

Dan looked up and scrutinized Lucifer. “Amenadiel is an angel and your brother. That makes you—”

“Yes, yes, technically that’s right. I am an archangel but I prefer not to be thrown in with the rest of the cloud-hoppers,” he said with a grimace. “Amenadiel has returned to the Silver City, though, and I’m not too sure he plans on returning any time soon.”

“Freaking angels, man…” Dan shook his head disbelievingly and Chloe patted his shoulder in camaraderie. After all, she couldn’t quite wrap her head around the concept, either.

“Do you…” Lucifer began and hesitated, when Chloe looked up at him. “Do you want to see?”

“What?” Images of his Devil face immediately shot through her head and she pushed them down, the red eyes making her heart speed up with a weird mixture of fear and, oddly, excitement.

“I meant the wings,” Lucifer added hastily, obviously having guessed where her thoughts had taken her. “I don’t think Dan is quite ready for my nastier side.”

“In Vegas you implied it might not be the best idea.”

“Deflection, mostly.” He stepped nervously from one foot onto the other. “I’ve shown Charlotte and Linda and they were mostly fine.”

“Sorry, but are we talking about _wings_ here?” Dan asked in bewilderment.

“Technically an archangel, remember?”

Lucifer stepped forward until he stood in the free space between the kitchen counter and the couch. He checked left and right for space, glanced at both Chloe and Dan for a moment, and then—

Chloe didn’t know whether to trust her eyes. Unfolding from Lucifer’s back were two huge, brilliantly white wings. The tips of the outermost feathers touched the walls on either side before he furled them a bit, hugging them closer to his body.

“Holy shit…” Dan breathed next to her and she felt his hand blindly reaching for his thigh to pinch it.

Lucifer’s eyes were fixed on her, waiting for her reaction and hers alone. There was the same kind of fear in his eyes that she’d seen back in Vegas, when he’d shown her his face. Fear of rejection, Chloe knew.

“Lucifer,” she whispered. “They are…” But how to describe them?

“They’re quite divine, yes. Though I hope that won’t ruin my image.” His attempt at humor was proof enough of his nerves.

“They’re quite something,” Chloe admitted.

“You really are the Devil, aren’t you?” Dan asked breathlessly. “You’re the actual Devil?”

“Yes, I am.”

“I think I need a drink,” Dan mumbled.

With a shrug, the wings disappeared and Chloe had to blink a couple times to readjust to Lucifer’s person without the two additional limbs. She smiled at him and patted Dan’s leg beside her. To Lucifer she said, “What do you say we go to Lux? A drink sounds like the best thing I’ve heard all day.”

“Couldn’t agree more, Detective.”

“Chloe,” she reminded him. “Come on, Dan. Lux has better booze than you do.”

It promised to be a very, very long night.


End file.
